Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
  • A01N—PRESERVATION OF BODIES OF HUMANS OR ANIMALS OR PLANTS OR PARTS THEREOF; BIOCIDES, e.g. AS DISINFECTANTS, AS PESTICIDES OR AS HERBICIDES; PEST REPELLANTS OR ATTRACTANTS; PLANT GROWTH REGULATORS
  • A01N51/00—Biocides, pest repellants or attractants, or plant growth regulators containing organic compounds having the sequences of atoms O—N—S, X—O—S, N—N—S, O—N—N or O-halogen, regardless of the number of bonds each atom has and with no atom of these sequences forming part of a heterocyclic ring
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
  • A01N—PRESERVATION OF BODIES OF HUMANS OR ANIMALS OR PLANTS OR PARTS THEREOF; BIOCIDES, e.g. AS DISINFECTANTS, AS PESTICIDES OR AS HERBICIDES; PEST REPELLANTS OR ATTRACTANTS; PLANT GROWTH REGULATORS
  • A01N63/00—Biocides, pest repellants or attractants, or plant growth regulators containing microorganisms, viruses, microbial fungi, animals or substances produced by, or obtained from, microorganisms, viruses, microbial fungi or animals, e.g. enzymes or fermentates
  • A01N63/10—Animals; Substances produced thereby or obtained therefrom
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
  • Y02A—TECHNOLOGIES FOR ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE
  • Y02A40/00—Adaptation technologies in agriculture, forestry, livestock or agroalimentary production
  • Y02A40/10—Adaptation technologies in agriculture, forestry, livestock or agroalimentary production in agriculture
  • Y02A40/146—Genetically Modified [GMO] plants, e.g. transgenic plants

Definitions

• the present invention relates generally to the control of pests that cause damage to corn plants by their feeding activities, and more particularly to the control of such corn plant pests by the combination of a corn seed having a transgenic event and the treatment of such seed with clothianidin pesticide prior to planting the seed.
• Insects and related arthropods annually destroy an estimated 15% of agricultural crops in the United States and even more than that in developing countries.
• competing weeds and parasitic and saprophytic plants account for even more potential yield losses.
• Corn is the most important grain crop in the Midwestern United States. Among the most serious insect pests of corn in this region is the larval form of three species of Diabrotica beetles. These include the Western corn rootworm, Diabrotica vergifera vergifera LeConte, the Northern corn rootworm, Diabrotica berberi Smith and Diabrotica berberi Lawrence, and the Southern corn rootworm, Diabrotica undecimpunctata howardi Barber. In fact, more insecticide is used for the control of corn rootworm than for any other pest of corn, and the total acreage treated is greater than for any other pest in the United States.
• Corn rootworms overwinter in the egg stage in fields where corn was grown the previous season. The eggs hatch from late May through June. If a corn crop is not followed by another corn crop in the subsequent year, the larvae will die. Accordingly, the impact of corn rootworm is felt most directly in areas where corn is systematically followed by corn, as is typical in many areas of the Midwestern United States.
• the larvae Following completion of larval development, the larvae transform into immobile pupae, and thence into the adult beetles that emerge from the soil throughout the summer, with the period of emergence depending upon the growing location. After emergence, the adult beetles feed for about two weeks before the females start laying eggs. Initially, the adults feed predominantly in the same field from which they emerged, but later will migrate to other fields. Peak adult activity normally occurs in the U.S. Corn Belt during late July or early August in fields planted to continuous corn, but activity may peak later in first year or late maturing cornfields. Rootworm beetles begin depositing eggs in cornfields approximately two weeks after they emerge.
• Conventional treatments include carbofuran insecticides (e.g., FURADAN® 15G at 8 oz/1000 ft of row); chloropyrifos (e.g., LORSBAN® 15G at 8 oz/1000 ft of row); fonophos (e.g., DYFONATE® 20G at 4.5 to 6.0 oz/1000 ft of row); phorate (e.g., THIMET® 20G at 6 oz/1000 ft of row); terbufos (e.g., COUNTER® 15G at 8 oz/1000 ft of row), or tefluthrin (e.g., FORCE® 3G at 4 to 5 oz/1000 ft of row).
• carbofuran insecticides e.g., FURADAN® 15G at 8 oz/1000 ft of row
• chloropyrifos e.g., LORSBAN® 15G at 8
• transgenic corn that encoded for delta-endotoxins provided the transgenic corn with improved resistance to European corn borer.
• a comprehensive report of field trials of transgenic corn that expresses an insecticidal protein from B. thuringiensis has been provided by Armstrong et al., in Crop Science, 35(2):550-557 (1995).
• any transgenic event alone will be sufficiently effective to protect corn from damage by corn rootworm in heavily infested fields that are dedicated to serial corn.
• the total control of corn rootworm damage by any one transgenic event may not be desirable in the long term, because of the potential for the development of resistant strains of the target pest.
• pesticides Another alternative to the conventional forms of pesticide application is the treatment of plant seeds with pesticides.
• Seed treatment with pesticides has the advantages providing for the protection of the seeds, while minimizing the amount of pesticide that was required and limiting the amount of contact with the pesticide and the number of different field applications that were necessary.
• the present invention is directed to a novel method for protecting a transgenic corn plant against feeding damage by one or more pests, the method comprising providing a seed for the transgenic corn plant which seed comprises a transgenic event having activity against at least one of the one or more pests; and treating the seed with an effective amount of clothianidin pesticide.
• the present invention is also directed to a novel transgenic corn seed that has been treated by providing a seed for the transgenic corn plant which seed comprises a transgenic event having activity against at least one of the one or more pests, and treating the seed with an effective amount of clothianidin pesticide.
• the present invention is also directed to a novel seed of a transgenic corn plant that provides increased resistance to the resulting corn plant against feeding damage by one or more pests, comprising a transgenic event having activity against at least one of the one or more pests, which seed has been treated with an effective amount of clothianidin pesticide.
• the provision of a method for the protection of plants, especially corn plants, from feeding damage by pests may be noted the provision of a method that would reduce the required application rate of conventional chemical pesticides; and the provision of a method that would limit the number of separate field operations that were required for crop planting and cultivation.
• corn plants can be protected against feeding damage by one or more pests by a method that includes providing a corn seed having a transgenic event that has activity against at least one of the pests and then treating the transgenic corn seed with an effective amount of clothianidin pesticide.
• a transgenic event having activity against corn rootworm and treatment of the seed with clothianidin provides unexpectedly synergistic advantages to seeds having such treatment, including unexpectedly superior efficacy for protection against damage to the resulting corn plant by corn rootworm.
• the combination of the present invention was unexpectedly superior to either the transgenic event alone, or to seed treatment with clothianidin alone, in protecting corn plants against more severe levels of damage by corn rootworm—levels of damage that are known to reduce corn yield.
• Corn plants and seeds that have been engineered to include exogenous genes derived from Bacillus thuringiensis that encode for the expression of Cry3 ⁇ -endotoxins having activity against Coleopteran pests are known, as are methods for the treatment of seeds (even some transgenic seeds) with pesticides.
• the treatment of a transgenic corn seeds that are capable of expressing certain modified Cry3Bb proteins with from about 100 gm to about 400 gm of clothianidin per 100 kg of seed provided unexpectedly superior protection against corn rootworm.
• such combination is also effective to protect the emergent corn plants against damage by black cutworm.
• the seeds of the present invention are also believed to have the property of decreasing the cost of pesticide use, because less of the pesticide can be used to obtain a required amount of protection than if the innovative method is not used.
• the subject method is therefore safer to the operator and to the environment, and is potentially less expensive than conventional methods.
• synergistic it is meant to include the synergistic effects of the combination on the pesticidal activity (or efficacy) of the combination of the transgenic event and the pesticide.
• synergistic effects it is not intended that such synergistic effects be limited to the pesticidal activity, but that they should also include such unexpected advantages as increased scope of activity, advantageous activity profile as related to type and amount of damage reduction, decreased cost of pesticide and application, decreased pesticide distribution in the environment, decreased pesticide exposure of personnel who produce, handle and plant corn seeds, and other advantages known to those skilled in the art.
• the present invention also provides an advantage of increasing the ability to match pesticidal activity against pest pressure. This refers to the ability to design the combination of the transgenic event and the pesticide treatment so that the seed or the resulting plant is provided with effective pesticidal activity during the period when feeding pressure from the target pest on the seed or plant reaches its maximum.
• the pesticide can be applied in a coating designed to provide controlled release of the clothianidin. The release rate can be selected so that the clothianidin provides protection against such other pests as, for example, black cutworm, at the post emergence stage of corn, while the transgenic event provides corn rootworm protection at a later stage of plant development—when such protection is needed.
• the terms “pesticidal effect” and “pesticidal activity”, or “activity” refer to a toxic effect against a pest.
• a seed or plant is “protected against feeding damage by one or more pests”, it is meant that such seed or plant possesses a feature having direct or indirect action on one or more pests that results in reduced feeding damage by such pest or pests on the seeds, roots, shoots and foliage of plants having such feature as compared to the feeding damage caused under the same conditions to plants not having such feature.
• Such direct or indirect actions include inducing death of the pest, repelling the pest from the plant seeds, roots, shoots and/or foliage, inhibiting feeding of the pest on, or the laying of its eggs on, the plant seeds, roots, shoots and/or foliage, and inhibiting or preventing reproduction of the pest.
• insecticidal activity has the same meaning as pesticidal activity, except it is limited to those instances where the pest is an insect. Except where specifically noted, when the term “pesticide” is used herein, that term refers to a chemical pesticide that is supplied externally to the seed, and it is not meant to include active agents that are produced by the particular seed or the plant that grows from the particular seed. However, the terms “pesticidal activity” and “insecticidal activity” can be used with reference to the activity of either, or both, an externally supplied pesticide and/or an agent that is produced by the seed or the plant.
• transgenic corn plant mean a corn plant or progeny thereof derived from a transformed corn plant cell or protoplast, wherein the plant DNA contains an introduced exogenous DNA molecule not originally present in a native, non-transgenic plant of the same strain.
• the transgenic corn seed is one that contains an exogenous gene that encodes a pesticidal protein.
• Pesticidal proteins of this type are described by Schnepf et al., in Microbiology & Molecular Biology Reviews, 62:775-806 (1998), and by ffrench-Constant and Bowen, in CMSL Cell. Mol. Life Sci., 57:828-833 (2000).
• the pesticidal protein is an insecticidal protein.
• the seed contains an exogenous gene derived from a strain of Bacillus thuringiensis, and in particular, it is preferred that the exogenous gene is one that encodes an insecticidal ⁇ -endotoxin derived from B. thuringiensis.
• exogenous gene is one that encodes an insecticidal ⁇ -endotoxin derived from B. thuringiensis.
• ⁇ -endotoxins are described in WO 99/31248 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,063,597, and include the Cry3 toxins.
• Nucleic acid segments that encode modified B. thuringiensis coleopteran-toxic crystal proteins that are useful in the present invention are described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,060,594, and insect resistant transgenic plants that include nucleic acid sequences that encode such insecticidal proteins are discussed in U.S. Pat. No.
• the ⁇ -endotoxins of the present invention include the Cry3B proteins, and even more preferred that the ⁇ -endotoxins include the coleopteran-active Cry3Bb proteins.
• the nomenclature of the B. thuringiensis insecticidal crystal proteins was set forth by Höfte and Whitely, Microbiol. Rev., 53:242-255, 1989. This nomenclature has been revised, and the revised nomenclature can be found at http://epunix.biols.susx.ac.uk/Home/Neil-Crickmore/Bt/index.html. The revised nomenclature will be used herein to describe transgenic event features and the ⁇ -endotoxin proteins encoded by the transgenic event.
• transgenic event when used herein, such terms are meant to refer to the genetically engineered DNA that is described above, but also to include the protein(s) that are encoded by the modified gene.
• a transgenic event in a corn seed, or corn plant therefore, includes the ability to express a protein.
• a “transgenic event has activity against a pest” it is to be understood that it is the protein that is encoded by the gene that actually has such activity when the protein is expressed and brought into contact with the pest.
• WO 99/31248 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,063,597 describe methods for genetically engineering B. thuringiensis ⁇ -endotoxin genes so that modified ⁇ -endotoxins can be expressed.
• the modified ⁇ -endotoxin differ from the wild-type proteins by having specific amino acid substitutions, additions or deletions as compared with the proteins produced by the wild-type organism.
• Such modified ⁇ -endotoxins are identified herein by the use of an asterisk (*), or by reference to a specific protein by its identifying number.
• Cry3* examples of which include, without limitation: Cry3Bb.11230, Cry3Bb.11231, Cry3Bb.11232, Cry3Bb.11233, Cry3Bb.11234, Cry3Bb.11235, Cry3Bb.11236, Cry3Bb.11237, Cry3Bb.11238, Cry3Bb.11239, Cry3Bb.11241, Cry3Bb.11242, and Cry3Bb.11098.
• modified ⁇ -endotoxins that were described in WO 99/31248 and in U.S. Pat. No. 6,063,597 were found to have enhanced activity against coleopteran insects, and in particular against Diabrotica spp., including corn rootworm.
• enhanced activity refer to the increased insecticidal activity of a modified toxin as compared with the activity of the same toxin without the amino acid modifications when both are tested under the same conditions.
• Cry3* ⁇ -endotoxins had enhanced activity against corn rootworm, and are therefore preferred for use in the present invention. More preferred are Cry3B* ⁇ -endotoxins, and even more preferred are Cry3Bb* ⁇ -endotoxins.
• transgenic events are those that comprise the ability to express the modified ⁇ -endotoxins that are listed in the following table. Also shown in the table are strains of transgenic B. thuringiensis that include genes for expression of the respective novel endotoxins, and the date and accession number of their deposit with the Agricultural Research Service Collection (NRRL) at 1815 N. University Street, Peoria, Ill. 91904.
• NRRL Agricultural Research Service Collection
• ACCESSION NUMBER (NRRL STRAIN DEPOSIT DATE PROTEIN NUMBER) EG11230 5/27/97 Cry3Bb.11230 B-21768 EG11231 5/27/97 Cry3Bb.11231 B-21769 EG11232 5/27/97 Cry3Bb.11232 B-21770 EG11233 5/27/97 Cry3Bb.11233 B-21771 EG11234 5/27/97 Cry3Bb.11234 B-21772 EG11235 5/27/97 Cry3Bb.11235 B-21773 EG11236 5/27/97 Cry3Bb.11236 B-21774 EG11237 5/27/97 Cry3Bb.11237 B-21775 EG11238 5/27/97 Cry3Bb.11238 B-21776 EG11239 5/27/97 Cry3Bb.11239 B-21777 EG11241 5/27/
• a preferred use of the present invention is for reducing pest feeding damage when used in combination with seeds having transgenic events that have certain levels of effectiveness against such pest.
• the following example will use the Iowa Root Rating Method (Hills and Peters, J. Econ. Entomol., 64:764-765, 1971), which measures corn rootworm feeding damage to corn roots on a 1-6 scale.
• a destroyed root is defined as a root that has been pruned to within 11 ⁇ 2 inch of the base. Pruned roots do not have to originate from a single node, but all pruned roots must equal the equivalent of a full node to count as a destroyed node.
• a transgenic event in corn is within the preferred range of effectiveness level if corn having such event suffers from about 5% to about 50% of the damage suffered by non-transgenic corn due to the same pest under the same conditions. It is more preferred that corn having such transgenic event suffers from about 10% to about 40% of the damage suffered by non-transgenic corn by the same pest under the same conditions, even more preferred is damage of from about 15% to about 30%, and yet more preferred is damage of from about 20% to about 30% of the damage suffered by non-transgenic corn by the same pest under the same conditions.
• the pesticidal seed treatment can provide significant advantages when combined with a transgenic event that provides protection that is within the preferred effectiveness range against a target pest.
• a transgenic event that provides protection that is within the preferred effectiveness range against a target pest.
• the present invention also includes seeds and plants having more that one transgenic event. Such combinations are referred to as “stacked” transgenic events. These stacked transgenic events can be events that are directed at the same target pest, or they can be directed at different target pests.
• a seed having the ability to express a Cry 3 protein also has the ability to express at least one other insecticidal protein that is different from a Cry 3 protein.
• the seed having the ability to express a Cry 3 protein also has a transgenic event that provides herbicide tolerance.
• the transgenic event that provides herbicide tolerance is an event that provides resistance to glyphosate, N-(phosphonomethyl) glycine, including the isopropylamine salt form of such herbicide, even more preferred is the transgenic event that is effective to provide the herbicide resistance of ROUNDUP READY® plants and seeds available from Monsanto Co., St. Louis, Mo.
• a corn seed having a transgenic event is treated with a pesticide that is identified as clothianidin, (N-[(2-chloro-5-thiazoyl)methyl]-N′-methyl-N′′-nitro,[C(E)]-(9Cl)-guanidine, CAS RN 210880-92-5, having a developmental number of TI-435).
• insecticide clothianidin When the insecticide clothianidin is described herein, it is to be understood that the description is intended to include salt forms of the insecticide as well as any isomeric and/or tautomeric form of the insecticide that exhibits the same insecticidal activity as the form of the insecticide that is described.
• the clothianidin insecticide that is useful in the present method can be of any grade or purity that pass in the trade as such insecticide.
• Other materials that accompany the insecticide in commercial preparations as impurities can be tolerated in the subject methods and compositions, as long as such other materials do not destabilize the composition or significantly reduce or destroy the activity of any of the insecticide components or the transgenic event against the target pest(s).
• One of ordinary skill in the art of the production of insecticides can readily identify those impurities that can be tolerated and those that cannot.
• the present method is useful to protect seeds and plants against a wide array of agricultural pests, including insects, mites, fungi, yeasts, molds and bacteria.
• pests include but are not limited to:
• Haematopinus spp. Linognathus spp., Pediculus spp., Pemphigus spp. and Phylloxera spp.;
• Thysanoptera for example
• Cimex spp. Distantiella theobroma, Dysdercus spp., Euchistus spp., Eurygaster spp., Leptocorisa spp., Nezara spp., Piesma spp., Rhodnius spp., Sahlbergella singularis, Scotinophara spp. and Triatoma spp.;
• the present invention is particularly effective when the insect pest is a Diabrotica spp., and especially when the pest is Diabrotica virgifera, Diabrotica barberi, or Diabrotica undecimpunctata.
• clothianidin is applied to a transgenic corn seed.
• the seed it is preferred that the seed be in a sufficiently durable state that it incurs no damage during the treatment process.
• the seed would be a seed that had been harvested from the field; removed from the plant; and separated from any cob, stalk, outer husk, and surrounding pulp or other non-seed plant material.
• the seed would preferably also be biologically stable to the extent that the treatment would cause no biological damage to the seed.
• the treatment can be applied to seed corn that has been harvested, cleaned and dried to a moisture content below about 15% by weight.
• the seed can be one that has been dried and then primed with water and/or another material and then re-dried before or during the treatment with the pesticide.
• the treatment can be applied to the seed at any time between harvest of the seed and sowing of the seed.
• the term “unsown seed” is meant to include seed at any period between the harvest of the seed and the sowing of the seed in the ground for the purpose of germination and growth of the plant.
• the pesticide, or combination of pesticides can be applied “neat”, that is, without any diluting or additional components present.
• the pesticide is typically applied to the seeds in the form of a pesticide formulation.
• This formulation may contain one or more other desirable components including but not limited to liquid diluents, binders to serve as a matrix for the pesticide, fillers for protecting the seeds during stress conditions, and plasticizers to improve flexibility, adhesion and/or spreadability of the coating.
• it may be desirable to add to the formulation drying agents such as calcium carbonate, kaolin or bentonite clay, perlite, diatomaceous earth or any other adsorbent material.
• the amount of the novel composition or other ingredients used in the seed treatment should not inhibit generation of the seed, or cause phytotoxic damage to the seed.
• the pesticide formulation that is used to treat the transgenic corn seed in the present invention can be in the form of a suspension; emulsion; slurry of particles in an aqueous medium (e.g., water); wettable powder; wettable granules (dry flowable); and dry granules. If formulated as a suspension or slurry, the concentration of the active ingredient in the formulation is preferably about 0.5% to about 99% by weight (w/w), preferably 5-40%.
• inert ingredients include but are not limited to: conventional sticking agents, dispersing agents such as methylcellulose (Methocel A15LV or Methocel A15C, for example, serve as combined dispersant/sticking agents for use in seed treatments), polyvinyl alcohol (e.g., Elvanol 51-05), lecithin (e.g., Yelkinol P), polymeric dispersants (e.g., polyvinylpyrrolidone/vinyl acetate PVP/VA S-630), thickeners (e.g., clay thickeners such as Van Gel B to improve viscosity and reduce settling of particle suspensions), emulsion stabilizers, surfactants, antifreeze compounds (e.g., urea), dyes, colorants, and the like.
• dispersing agents such as methylcellulose (Methocel A15LV or Methocel A15C, for example, serve as combined dispersant/sticking agents for use in seed treatments)
• polyvinyl alcohol
• inert ingredients useful in the present invention can be found in McCutcheon's, vol. 1, “Emulsifiers and Detergents,” MC Publishing Company, Glen Rock, N.J., U.S.A., 1996. Additional inert ingredients useful in the present invention can be found in McCutcheon's, vol. 2, “Functional Materials,” MC Publishing Company, Glen Rock, N.J., U.S.A., 1996.
• the pesticides and pesticide formulations of the present invention can be applied to seeds by any standard seed treatment methodology, including but not limited to mixing in a container (e.g., a bottle or bag), mechanical application, tumbling, spraying, and immersion.
• a container e.g., a bottle or bag
• Any conventional active or inert material can be used for contacting seeds with pesticides according to the present invention, such as conventional film-coating materials including but not limited to water-based film coating materials such as Sepiret (Seppic, Inc., Fairfield, N.J.) and Opacoat (Berwind Pharm. Services, Westpoint, Pa.).
• the subject pesticides can be applied to a seed as a component of a seed coating.
• Seed coating methods and compositions that are known in the art are useful when they are modified by the addition of one of the embodiments of the combination of pesticides of the present invention.
• Such coating methods and apparatus for their application are disclosed in, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,918,413, 5,891,246, 5,554,445, 5,389,399, 5,107,787, 5,080,925, 4,759,945 and 4,465,017.
• Seed coating compositions are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos.
• Useful seed coatings contain one or more binders and at least one of the subject combinations of pesticides.
• Binders that are useful in the present invention preferably comprise an adhesive polymer that may be natural or synthetic and is without phytotoxic effect on the seed to be coated.
• the binder may be selected from polyvinyl acetates; polyvinyl acetate copolymers; ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) copolymers; polyvinyl alcohols; polyvinyl alcohol copolymers; celluloses, including ethylcelluloses, methylcelluloses, hydroxymethylcelluloses, hydroxypropylcelluloses and carboxymethylcellulose; polyvinylpyrolidones; polysaccharides, including starch, modified starch, dextrins, maltodextrins, alginate and chitosans; fats; oils; proteins, including gelatin and zeins; gum arabics; shellacs; vinylidene chloride and vinylidene chloride copolymers; calcium lignosulfonates; acrylic copolymers; polyvinylacrylates; polyethylene oxide;
• the binder be selected so that it can serve as a matrix for the subject pesticides. While the binders disclosed above may all be useful as a matrix, the specific binder will depend upon the properties of the combination of pesticides.
• the term “matrix”, as used herein, means a continuous solid phase of one or more binder compounds throughout which is distributed as a discontinuous phase one or more of the subject pesticides.
• a filler and/or other components can also be present in the matrix.
• matrix is to be understood to include what may be viewed as a matrix system, a reservoir system or a microencapsulated system.
• a matrix system consists of pesticides of the present invention and filler uniformly dispersed within a polymer, while a reservoir system consists of a separate phase comprising the subject pesticides, that is physically dispersed within a surrounding, rate-limiting, polymeric phase.
• Microencapsulation includes the coating of small particles or droplets of liquid, but also to dispersions in a solid matrix.
• the amount of binder in the coating can vary, but will be in the range of about 0.01 to about 25% of the weight of the seed, more preferably from about 0.05 to about 15%, and even more preferably from about 0.1% to about 10%.
• the matrix can optionally include a filler.
• the filler can be an absorbent or an inert filler, such as are known in the art, and may include woodflours, clays, activated carbon, sugars, diatomaceous earth, cereal flours, fine-grain inorganic solids, calcium carbonate, and the like.
• Clays and inorganic solids which may be used, include calcium bentonite, kaolin, china clay, talc, perlite, mica, vermiculite, silicas, quartz powder, montmorillonite and mixtures thereof.
• Sugars, which may be useful, include dextrin and maltodextrin.
• Cereal flours include wheat flour, oat flour and barley flour.
• the filler is selected so that it will provide a proper microclimate for the seed, for example the filler is used to increase the loading rate of the active ingredients and to adjust the control-release of the active ingredients.
• the filler can aid in the production or process of coating the seed.
• the amount of filler can vary, but generally the weight of the filler components will be in the range of about 0.05 to about 75% of the seed weight, more preferably about 0.1 to about 50%, and even more preferably about 0.5% to 15%.
• the pesticides that are useful in the coating are those pesticides that are described herein.
• the amount of pesticide that is used for the treatment of the seed will vary depending upon the type of seed and the type of active ingredients, but the treatment will comprise contacting the seeds with an amount of the combination of pesticides that is pesticidally effective. When insects are the target pest, that amount will be an amount of the insecticide that is insecticidally effective.
• an insecticidally effective amount means that amount of insecticide that will kill insect pests in the larvae or pupal state of growth, or will consistently reduce or retard the amount of damage produced by insect pests.
• the amount of clothianidin that is applied to the seed in the treatment will range from about 10 gm to about 2000 gm of the active ingredient of the pesticide per 100 kg of the weight of the seed.
• the amount of pesticide will be within the range of about 50 gm to about 1000 gm active per 100 kg of seed, more preferably within the range of about 100 gm to about 600 gm active per 100 kg of seed, and even more preferably within the range of about 200 gm to about 500 gm of active per 100 kg of seed weight.
• the amount of the pesticide be over about 60 gm of the active ingredient of the pesticide per 100 kg of the seed, and more preferably over about 80 gm per 100 kg of seed.
• the pesticide that is used in the treatment must not inhibit germination of the seed and should be efficacious in protecting the seed and/or the plant during that time in the target insect's life cycle in which it causes injury to the seed or plant.
• the coating will be efficacious for approximately 0 to 120 days after sowing.
• the pesticide of the subject invention can be applied to the seed in the form of a coating.
• the use of a coating is particularly effective in accommodating high pesticidal loads, as can be required to treat typically refractory pests, such as corn rootworm, while at the same time preventing unacceptable phytotoxicity due to the increased pesticidal load.
• a plasticizer can be used in the coating formulation.
• Plasticizers are typically used to make the film that is formed by the coating layer more flexible, to improve adhesion and spreadability, and to improve the speed of processing. Improved film flexibility is important to minimize chipping, breakage or flaking during storage, handling or sowing processes.
• Many plasticizers may be used, however, useful plasticizers include polyethylene glycol, glycerol, butylbenzylphthalate, glycol benzoates and related compounds.
• the range of plasticizer in the coating layer will be in the range of from bout 0.1 to about 20% by weight.
• the pesticide used in the coating is an oily type formulation and little or no filler is present, it may be useful to hasten the drying process by drying the formulation.
• This optional step may be accomplished by means will known in the art and can include the addition of calcium carbonate, kaolin or bentonite clay, perlite, diatomaceous earth, or any absorbent material that is added preferably concurrently with the pesticidal coating layer to absorb the oil or excess moisture.
• the amount of calcium carbonate or related compounds necessary to effectively provide a dry coating will be in the range of about 0.5 to about 10% of the weight of the seed.
• the coatings formed with the pesticide are preferably of the type that are capable of effecting a slow rate of release of the pesticide by diffusion or movement through the matrix to the surrounding medium.
• the seed may be treated with one or more of the following ingredients: other pesticides including fungicides and herbicides; herbicidal safeners; fertilizers and/or biocontrol agents. These ingredients may be added as a separate layer or alternatively may be added in the pesticidal coating layer.
• the pesticide formulation may be applied to the seeds using conventional coating techniques and machines, such as fluidized bed techniques, the roller mill method, rotostatic seed treaters, and drum coaters. Other methods, such as spouted beds may also be useful.
• the seeds may be presized before coating. After coating, the seeds are typically dried and then transferred to a sizing machine for sizing. Such procedures are known in the art.
• the pesticide-treated seeds may also be enveloped with a film overcoating to protect the pesticide coating.
• a film overcoating to protect the pesticide coating.
• Such overcoatings are known in the art and may be applied using conventional fluidized bed and drum film coating techniques.
• a pesticide in another embodiment, can be introduced onto or into a seed by use of solid matrix priming.
• a quantity of the pesticide can be mixed with a solid matrix material and then the seed can be placed into contact with the solid matrix material for a period to allow the pesticide to be introduced to the seed.
• the seed can then optionally be separated from the solid matrix material and stored or used, or the mixture of solid matrix material plus seed can be stored or planted directly.
• Solid matrix materials which are useful in the present invention include polyacrylamide, starch, clay, silica, alumina, soil, sand, polyurea, polyacrylate, or any other material capable of absorbing or adsorbing the pesticide for a time and releasing that pesticide into or onto the seed. It is useful to make sure that the pesticide and the solid matrix material are compatible with each other.
• the solid matrix material should be chosen so that it can release the pesticide at a reasonable rate, for example over a period of minutes, hours, or days.
• the present invention further embodies imbibition as another method of treating seed with the pesticide.
• plant seed can be combined for a period of time with a solution comprising from about 1% by weight to about 75% by weight of the pesticide in a solvent such as water.
• concentration of the solution is from about 5% by weight to about 50% by weight, more preferably from about 10% by weight to about 25% by weight.
• the seed takes up (imbibes) a portion of the pesticide.
• the mixture of plant seed and solution can be agitated, for example by shaking, rolling, tumbling, or other means.
• the seed can be separated from the solution and optionally dried, for example by patting or air drying.
• a powdered pesticide can be mixed directly with seed.
• a sticking agent can be used to adhere the powder to the seed surface.
• a quantity of seed can be mixed with a sticking agent and optionally agitated to encourage uniform coating of the seed with the sticking agent.
• the seed coated with the sticking agent can then be mixed with the powdered pesticide.
• the mixture can be agitated, for example by tumbling, to encourage contact of the sticking agent with the powdered pesticide, thereby causing the powdered pesticide to stick to the seed.
• the present invention also provides a transgenic corn seed that has been treated with a pesticide by the method described above.
• the treated seeds of the present invention can be used for the propagation of corn plants in the same manner as conventional treated corn seed.
• the treated seeds can be stored, handled, sowed and tilled in the same manner as any other pesticide treated seed.
• Appropriate safety measures should be taken to limit contact of the treated seed with humans, food or feed materials, water and birds and wild or domestic animals.
• Corn seeds were prepared to express the Bacillus thuringienses endotoxin Cry3Bb.11231 by the method described in WO 99/31248 or U.S. Pat. No. 6,023,013.
• a seed treatment formulation was prepared by mixing a measured amount of clothianidin in water as a carrier and applying the formulation for one minute at room temperature to a measured weight of corn seed in a rotostatic seed treater. The respective weights of the pesticide preparation and the corn seed were calculated to provide the desired rate of treatment of pesticide on the seed.
• the pesticide was mixed into sufficient water to permit efficient distribution of the formulation to all of the seeds in the batch while minimizing loss of treatment formulation due to lack of uptake of the formulation by the seeds. Treated seeds were allowed to sit uncapped for at least four hours before planting.
• a field trial was run in accordance with pertinent protocols and in conformance with USDA notification requirements. The purpose of the trial was to determine the efficacy of transgenic event Cry3Bb.11231 in corn seed in combination with corn rootworm seed treatments using clothianidin.
• plot design included the following:
• Corn Seed Type (grams Al/100 kg seed) 1 Isohybrid 2 Cry3Bb.11231 3 Isohybrid Clothianidin @ 100 gm Al/100 kg 4 Isohybrid Clothianidin @ 300 gm Al/100 kg 5 Isohybrid Clothianidin @ 400 gm Al/100 kg 6 CryBb.11231 Clothianidin @ 100 gm Al/100 kg 7 CryBb.11231 Clothianidin @ 300 gm Al/100 kg 8 Isohybrid Standard treatment of Force ® 3G @ 0.15 oz Al/1000 ft row, applied as a 5′′ band on the soil surface at the time of planting.
• Seed receiving treatment numbers 1 and 2 had no pesticide treatment that would be expected to be effective against corn rootworm.
• Example 1 For seeds having treatments numbered 3 though 7, the pesticides were applied by the methods described in Example 1. In seed treatment number 8, commercially available Force® 3G was applied to the soil in a 5′′ band at the time of sowing. The levels of application are as shown and are within the ranges recommended for standard commercial practice.
• Corn seeds to be tested were planted and grown at five different locations across two Midwestern states in the United States corn belt according to the protocol described above.
• Clothianidin was effective against corn rootworm damage at all levels tested, but the effectiveness of clothianidin at all levels was less than the effectiveness of the transgenic event alone. All combinations of treatment with clothianidin of the transgenic seed were more effective against rootworm damage than any pesticide treatment alone or the transgenic event alone.
• the combination of Cry3Bb.11231 with clothianidin at 300 gm/100 kg of seed provided essentially the same protection as the commercial standard treatment of 4.25 gm FORCE® 3G per 100 ft of row applied as a surface band at planting. Treatment of transgenic seed with only 100 gm/100 kg of clothianidin provided almost the same level of protection.
• the advantages of the present treatment of transgenic seed with clothianidin include the simplification of planting, by removing the requirement for separate application of the pesticide. Furthermore, planting is easier and safer, since the planter does not have to handle a concentrated pesticide.
• This threshold was compared against the percent of control for the treatment combinations (i.e., Cry3Bb.11231 with clothianidin @ 100 gm/100 kg and Cry3Bb.11231 with clothianidin @ 300 gm/100 kg). If the treatment combination percent of control was below the threshold, then it was concluded that there was synergy. If the treatment combination percent of control was above the threshold, then it was concluded that synergy was not demonstrated for that combination. This calculation was repeated for damage levels 4-6 and 5-6, and the results of the calculations are shown in Tables 2(b) and 2(c).
• rootworm damage at higher damage levels i.e., levels 3-6, levels 4-6 and levels 5 and 6) is a useful indicator that correlates with subsequent yield loss due to such damage.
• levels 3-6, levels 4-6 and levels 5 and 6 are useful indicators that correlates with subsequent yield loss due to such damage.
• rootworm damage at levels 1 and 2 seldom causes corn plants to fall over and lodge, and such minimal root loss is not believed to reduce the number or weight of kernels per ear.
• root damage at levels of 3 and above increasingly causes lodging and loss of yield. Therefore, it is believed that the summed damage levels of 3-6, 4-6 and 5 and 6, provides a useful indication of the effect of corn rootworm damage on subsequent corn yield.

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